Multipole circuit breaker



p 14, 1954 K. w. WILCKENS MULTIPOLE CIRCUIT BREAKER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed D60. 25, 1950 If I INVENTOR. KURT W WILCKENS HIS ATTORNEY Sept.14, 1954 K. w. WILCKENS MULTIPOLE CIRCUIT BREAKER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FiledDec. 23, 1950 m a I s 2.2 o bbc m Rm mK 5 1/ 122 Z T a a 5% Z2 M I c 9 m15 A TTORIVEY Patented Sept. 14, 1954 MULTIPOLE CIRCUIT BREAKER :KurtWilckens, Morrisville, Pa., 'assign'or to Heinemann Electric Company,

Trenton, N. .41.,

a-corporation of'New Jersey Application December 23, 1950,.Serial No.'2'02,5'42

8 Elaims. l :My invention is a multi-pole circuit breaker for protectingequipment, such 'as :a transformer, zfrom injury due to overdra'tts ofcurrent Etheretf-rom ithroughla single lead or multiple leads, butpermitting the-operation of the equipment so long as the total currentdrawn through all the leads does not .exceed a safe load for theprotected equipment. The'leadin object of my invention fis'to permit .amajor portion or all of the rated capacity of a trans-former to be drawnthrough either {pole :of. the'br'ea'kerwhen little or no :current 'is:fiowing. through the other pole; to perimit the full :rated capacity:to be drawn :from the transformer across the high voltage leads, .or"to permit the full rated napacity to ice drawn across both high voltageleads and the neutral, :or any combination of these arrangements, :solong as the total current drawn does not exceed -a predeterminedmaximum, but to trip the breaker should the total current drawn exceedthe predetermined maximum for predetermined times, which are inverselyproportional to the overloads.

In accordance with :my invention, an electromagnet and complementaryarmature is provided for each pole (or blade) of a multi-pole breaker,and each blade is connected with windings on both electromagnets.Consequently theflux density' tending to draw any armature toward itscomplementary electro-magnet its product of the current flowing throughboth blades. The number-of windings'of each electro-magnet conneetedwith a blade may be in any desired :proportion so long as the totalnumber of ampere toms on an electrmmagnet will :trip its ecomplementaryarmature upona'total predetermined current flow therethrough, but for.generalause I have found it desirable that-60% of the turns on eachelectro magnet be supplied with current through one blade and that 40%:of the turns on the same electro-magnet be supplied withlcurrent fromthe other blade. with such an arrangement approximately 85% of'the totalrated current may flow through one blade without tripping th "breaker,-provided no current is simultaneously flowing through the other blade.

'The rocking of either armature -aotuaites a tripping mechanism whichmaybe arranged "to per- .mit the opening of both blades oreitherof them.

My invention also comprehends a unit structure having ampere turnsof:asolenoid so connected with a switch blade and with terminals as topermit two units to be readily coupled together to Tom a multi-polebreaker of th type hereinbefore described or to permit the bridg- =i-ngof the terminals of a single unit to form a single pole breakerresponsive solely to the flow through a single lead and preferablypermitting continued fiow therethrough of only half the rated capacityofthe breaker.

The principles of my invention "and the best mode in which I'havecontemplated putting such principles into practice williurtherappear from the -following description and the accompanyingdrawings in illustrationithereof.

:In the drawings Fig. "l .isa perspective view of a multi-pole, singlehandle breaker embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged,longitudinal sectional view taken .on the line 2=.2*io'f Fig. 1; Fig. 3'is :a diagrammatic layout of the breaker of Fig, 1 connected with theleads of a transformer; Fig. 4 "is a somewhat diagramimatic perspectnzeView of the windings 0f the solenoids act the .rnulti-p'ole ibre'akershown in Figs. 1 to 3:; Fig. 5 is a perspective'view of a pair 10fhoused units coupled together to form a multipole breaker havingseparate handles and. tog-- glee; Fig. '6 is an. enlarged transversesectional 'viewtalren on the 1ine66 of Fig. '5; Fig. 7 is a diagrammaticlayout of the breaker :of Figs. 5 and 6 connected with the leads ofattransfornrer; :Big; 8 is .a fragmentary side elevation of the sleit ndnitshown Fig. turnedaroundsso that its lease-is :domnrard andwithbridges insertedito adapt such 1111117 for single lead use Fig. 9. is atransverse seetionalrview taken (on the line 99 8'; and Fig. 1o is adiagrammatic view illustrating how the windin terminals may be eitherhri'dged together i; the .same unit .orcou- :pled-toacoin, ementaryunit.

In embodiment of my invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to olfthedrawingsan insulating casi and cover 2 iorm a housing for a two pole,single handle, circuit breaker.

Each pole of the breaker comprises'a magnetically permeable L-shapedframe '3 fixed in the casing and provided with ears 4 for supporting abiased, rocking "switch olaole'z5 .or in and with E for pivotallysupporting an L- shaped armature A shaft 8 is iournal'l'ed in the outerends of the ears ii of the respective frames and fixed thereto anoperating handle e projecting through an opening in the cover 2. Thehandle :8 has fixed thereto a pair :of Ihosses 5i forming, with thehandle body, spaced :bearings for a rod to on. a link 1! is -pivcrtallymounted between the bosses 9'. The link 5-H :is spiuotaily connected bya pintle l'l with a link 1112 whose other :end is journalled .on themiddle 3 of a shaft 5' having its ends fixed to the blades 5 and 5aintermediate the ends thereof. The links H and I2 may be latched rigidlytogether by the engagement of a tooth on the link H with a convexsurface of a shaft l5 journalled in the link l2 and provided with crankarms IS in the path of the bent fingers of the respective armatures l. Aportion of the peripheral face of the shaft I5 is flat so as to permitpassage of the tooth when the shaft 15 is turned, as more fully setforth in my Letters Patent No. 2,360,922.

Each frame 3 has mounted therein a dash pot tube l8 or Illa whichcontains a magnetically permeable core I!) or l9a movable toward a polepiece 20 or 20a at the front of each tube adjacent to its armature 1.

Each pole of the breaker thus far described is generally similar to thesingle pole breaker shown in my Letters Patent No. 2,360,922.

In accordance with my present invention, the switch blade 5 is connectedin series, through a pigtail 2|, with an insulated conductor 22 which iswound counterclockwise on the tube l8 to form a coil or ampere turns 22;is then wound counterclockwise on the tube lBa to form a coil or ampereturns 22 and is then connected with the load terminal 23. The blade 5ais similarly connected through a pigtail 24 with a conductor 25 which iswound counterclockwise on the tube lfla to form a coil or ampere turns25; is wound on the tube I8 to form a coil or ampere turns 25 and isthen connected with the load terminal 23a.

The number of turns in the coil 22 should at least equal and shouldpreferably slightly exceed the number of turns in the coil 25" and thetotal number of turns in the coils 22 and 25 should be great enough totrip the armature I complementary to the pole piece 20 whenever thetotal current flowing through both coils becomes great enough todeleteriously affect equipment protected by the breaker. If no currentis flowing through the coil 25", nearly the whole rated current of thearrester (viz., nearly double rated current for one pole) may flowthrough the coil 22' before the flux density generated thereby will tripthe armature 1 complementary to the pole piece 20. When the flux densityresulting from current flow through both or either coil on the tube 18is suflicient to attract the complementary armature I, the breaker willbe tripped.

The number of turns in the coils 25' should approximate the number ofturns in the coil 22' and the number of turns in the coil 22" shouldapproximate the number of turns in the coil 25" so that the armature Icomplementary to the pole piece 20a will be tripped whenever the totalcurrent flowing through both coils. 25', 22 or through either coilexceeds the permissible total current that may be safely drawn from asource, such as the transformer T.

The transformer T has leads A and B connected with the breakers lineterminals 26 and 26a which are connected with line contacts 21, 21acomplementary to the blades 5 and 5a. The generator is also providedwith the neutral lead C with which the load leads a and 1), leading fromthe breakers load terminals 23, 23a, may be connected through the loadsa, b. A load 0', requiring higher voltage, may be connected across theleads a, I).

So long as the total current drawn by the loads a, b, 0 does not exceedthe rated capacity of the transformer T by more than a permissibleoverload for an appropriate time, the flux density at the pole pieces20, 20a will be insufilcient to attract either armature 1. If thecurrent supplied through either blade of the breaker is decreased oreliminated, the current supplied through the other blade may beincreased until the fiux generated by the coil directly connected withsuch blade, plus any flux generated by the adjacent coil, is suflicientto attract the armature 1 complementary to such coils.

When either armature I is rocked, the finger l1 lifts a crank arm l6 andturns the shaft l5 so that its convex surface is disengaged from thetooth of the link I l, thereby unlatching the toggles and permitting theblades 5 and 5a to be opened by their biasing springs 5".

In the embodiment of my invention illustrated in Figs. 5 to 10, separatebreaker poles are mounted in individual cases IA and IB, and the blades5 and 5a are individually controlled by individual trip mechanisms, asgenerally shown in my Letters Patent No. 2,360,922 excepting insofar asthe solenoid coils are concerned.

In accordance with the present embodiment of my invention, the coilsection 22' has one end connected with the blade 5 and its other endconnected with a terminal socket 3|] in the insulating wall of thecasing IB. The coil section 25" has its opposite ends connected withterminal sockets 3| and 32 in the same insulating wall. The loadterminal 23 is connected through a conductor with a terminal socket 33in the same insulating wall. The ends of the coil section 25' areconnected with the blade 5a and with a terminal socket 3| in theinsulating wall of the casing IA and adapted to be aligned with theterminal socket 3 I. The coil section 22 has one end connected with aterminal socket 30; adapted to be aligned with the socket 3D, and itsother end connected with a terminal socket 33', adapted to be alignedwith the socket 33. The load terminal 23a is connected by a conductorwith a terminal socket 32 adapted to be aligned with the terminal socket32.

All of the coils are wound in the same direction and are shown woundcounterclockwise, but they may be all wound clockwise.

When the aligned sockets in the units IA and IB are connected byconducting pins 30a, 3la, 32a and 33a, as shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, thecoil of each electro-magnet contains turns connected with both blades 5and 5a as described in connection with Figs. 1 to 4. But when the pairsof sockets 30, 3| and 32, 33 of unit IE or the pairs of sockets 30, 3|and 32, 33' of unit IB are respectively connected by U-shaped conductingbridges 35 and 36 as indicated in Figs. 8, 9 and 10, each unit may beused as an individual circuit breaker having a rated capacity equal toone half of the total capacity of the multi-pole breaker formed bycoupling the units.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A multi-pole circuit breaker comprising plural switch blades, tripmechanism mechanically connected with and controlling said blades andcomprising an electro-magnet having a' com posite coil havingindependent windings in parallel with one another and respectivelyconnected in series with the respective blades, and an armatureresponsive to current flow through both said windings both of saidwindings consisting of ampere turns wound in the same direction tocreate cumulative flux tending to move said armature.

2. A multi-pole circuit breaker comprising plural switch blades and tripmechanism mechana st-gee ically connected with and controlling saidblades and comprising plural electro-magnets each having independentwindings in parallel with one another and each electro-magnet beingsupplied with current through both of the plural switch blades, bothwindings of each electro-magnet aforesaid consisting of ampere turnswound in the same direction to create cumulative flux for operating tripmechanism aforesaid.

3. A multi-pole circuit breaker comprising plural switch blades eachhaving a line terminal and a load terminal in operative associationtherewith and trip mechanism mechanically connected with and controllingsaid blades and including an armature complementary to each switch bladeand a solenoid complementary to each armature, each solenoid includingindependent windings in parallel with one another, each winding of eachsolenoid being in series with only one of the plural switch blades,independent windings of each solenoid consisting of ampere turns woundin the same direction to create cumulative flux tending to move itscomplementary armature.

4. A circuit breaker comprising plural movable switch blades and tripmechanism mechanically connected with said switch blades and includingplural independently movable armatures and solenoids each solenoidincluding a winding connected with a blade and a winding connected inseries with a winding of the other solenoid, both windings of a solenoidaforesaid consisting of ampere turns wound in the same direction and inparallel with one another.

5. The combination of a pair of circuit breakers each comprising amovable switch blade and trip mechanism mechanically connected with saidswitch blade and including an armature movable independently of theother armature and a solenoid, the solenoid of each breaker including awinding having a permanent connection with the blade of such breaker anda winding having readily detachable connections with a winding of theother solenoid, both windings of each solenoid consisting of ampereturns wound in the same direction and in parallel with one another.

6. A circuit breaker adapted for use as an individual trip breaker orfor assembly in a plural breaker tripped by the total flow of currentand which comprises a movable switch blade and trip mechanismmechanically linked with the switch blade and comprising an armature, asolenoid complementary to said armature and including a 6 pair ofwindings in parallel, one of said windings being connected with saidblade and with a terminal and the other of said windings being connectedwith a pair of terminals, and both windings of each solenoid consistingof ampere turns wound in the same direction.

7. A circuit breaker comprising a housing, a movable blade and acomplementary contact within said housing and trip mechanismmechanically linked with said blade and comprising a solenoid having apair of windings wound in the same direction, one of said windings beingconnected with said blade and having a terminal projecting through saidhousing and the other of said windings having a pair of terminalsprojecting through said housing.

8. The combination with a transformer having multiple leads, of switchblades respectively moveable into and out of series connection with oneof said leads, multiple electro-magnets each including an ampere turncoil connected with a switch blade aforesaid and also including anampere turn coil connected in series with an ampere turn coil of theother electro-magnet, the ampere turn coils of each electro-magnet beinginsulated from one another and wound in the same direction to produce acumulative fiux upon flow of current through both such coils, saidelectro-magnets each containing a hollow tube with a magneticallypermeable core therein moveable by the cumulative flux of the ampereturn coils of such electro-magnet and trip mechanisms respectivelyoperable by the respective fluxes of the respective electro-magnets.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 614,472 Ihlder Nov. 22, 1898 721,273 Ball Feb. 24', 1903797,048 Davis et a1. Aug. 15, 1905 837,023 Wright Nov. 27, 19061,259,202 Baruch Mar. 12, 1918 1,315,780 Larzelere Sept. 9, 19191,526,027 Traver Feb. 10, 1925 1,636,900 Darker July 26, 1927 1,984,820Bohli Dec. 18, 1934 2,074,584 Graves Mar. 23, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTSNumber Country Date 670,364 Germany Jan. 17, 1939

